Calgary, AB – The Calgary Flames have announced today that they have assigned Jaromir Jagr to HC Kladno of the Czech 1. Liga in the Czech Republic.

Jagr, a native of Klando, Czech Republic, appeared in 22 games for the Flames this season notching one goal and six assists for seven points.

"I want to thank Brad Treliving and the Calgary Flames for giving me the immense opportunity to be a part of their team and continue my NHL career this season,” said Jagr. “Although I am very disappointed that things did not turn out as we had hoped due to a number of circumstances, I am deeply grateful to the Flames, the fans and the City of Calgary for having welcomed me so generously. I now look forward to continuing the season in Kladno."

“Jaromir’s career speaks for itself,” said Flames General Manager Brad Treliving. “He is a legend in our sport and we are very appreciative that he selected Calgary to pursue his career in the NHL. Regretfully, with a late start to his season combined with nagging injuries, he wasn’t in a position to perform at the level both he and our team had hoped. During his short time in Calgary, Jaromir demonstrated tremendous leadership and professionalism, especially with our young players. We thank him for his contributions to our group both on and off the ice.”

Calgary, AB – The Calgary Flames announced today that they have signed forward Jaromir Jagr to a one-year contract.

Jagr, a native of Kladno, Czech Republic, is entering his 25th NHL season. He is currently the leading point scorer among active NHL players and has the second most points in NHL history with 765 goals and 1149 assists for 1914 regular season points behind only Wayne Gretzky. He has won two Stanley Cups with the Pittsburgh Penguins (1991, 1992) in addition to an Olympic gold medal (1998) and two World Championships (2005, 2010).

Jaromir Jagr said Wednesday he wasn't expecting it to be so difficult to sign with an NHL team this offseason.

"The most serious negotiations I have are with Kladno. Because Kladno has a smart owner who knows what he wants," joked Jagr, who owns the team in Czech Republic's second-tier professional league. "No, really, I don't have a clue. I leave it all on my agent [Petr Svoboda]. There is a couple of [NHL] teams that showed interest, but nothing specific yet."...

Jagr said if he stays in the Czech Republic, he would play for Kladno, not in Extraliga, the top league, because he would like to keep open as an option signing with an NHL team during the season.

"That would be the advantage of playing for Kladno. One thing is I would be at home and the other is I would have a chance to leave for the NHL anytime there is an opportunity," he said. "Let's say some team deals with injuries and needs help, then I could pack my stuff in the next day and go. If I played in Extraliga, I wouldn't have such an option unless the Czech league season would be over."

Jagr remains hopeful he'll sign with an NHL team, but only if the situation is right.

"Most important for me is to see some serious interest from the team. Because the more serious it is, the bigger the chance to get a better role on the team," he said. "And then it's on me how I would use that chance. Right now, I need to be ready when the opportunity comes. That's all I need to take care of now; taking care of anything else doesn't make sense."

Jagr is philosophical about 1,888 points and being second all-time in NHL scoring. Maybe he could have had more points, and not just because he left the League for three seasons to play in the Kontinental Hockey League and went through three lockouts.

Asked how he would feel in 10 or 15 years, he said: "It's going to be kind of mixed feeling. I'm the guy that always wants to get better, no matter what. You could say I could do a lot better."

Asked if he could imagine at 18 that he would be standing here at 44 having done this, he said: "Well, I thought I was gonna be standing here at 35. When I was 18, I thought I was going to be the best in the world for 20 years."

But he also said he had been lucky with injuries, turning around to find some wood to knock on, and he talked about how the Pittsburgh Penguins had selected him No. 5 in the 1990 NHL Draft. He played with Mario Lemieux, Bryan Trottier, Ron Francis, Paul Coffey.

Florida Panthers right wing Jaromir Jagr is the 2015-16 recipient of the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy, awarded annually to the NHL player who “best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to hockey.” The award was presented by the Professional Hockey Writers Association (PHWA) to honor the late Bill Masterton, a player for the Minnesota North Stars who exhibited those qualities. Masterton died on Jan. 15, 1968, as a result of an on-ice injury.

SUNRISE, Fla. – Florida Panthers Executive Vice President and General Manager Dale Tallon announced today that the Panthers have agreed to terms with forward Jaromir Jagr on a one-year contract. As per club policy, terms of the contract were not disclosed.

“Jaromir is a Hall of Fame player and had an excellent season playing alongside Aleksander Barkov and Jonathan Huberdeau,” Tallon said. “His track record speaks for itself, ranking third all-time in points and goals. He has been a great fit with our organization and we are excited to have him back for next season.”

“Jaromir has had a tremendous influence on our younger players and has been a key offensive contributor on our team,” Panthers Head Coach Gerard Gallant said. “We are happy to have him back as we look to build off this year’s playoff appearance.”

The odes have poured forth to Jaromir Jagr all season. And though each and every sonnet directed at the fabled No. 68 is richly deserved, so in fact is a larger prize.

For Jagr is not only worthy of admiration, he is in fact worthy of the Hart Trophy as the league’s MVP, 17 years after he won it for the first and only time.

Value is in the eye of the beholder and voter. Remember: The Hart does not necessarily go to the league’s best player, but rather “the player adjudged to be the most valuable to his team.”

Judgement, of course, is rendered on a subjective basis, but go ahead, you tell me: What player in the NHL has been more valuable to his team than Jagr, who is having a Second Career Year and around whom the historically ineffectual Puddy Tats have coalesced to become one of the NHL’s emerging nations?

Brooks continues, also discussing Steven Stamkos, the "average" points registered by an NHL team and Braden Holtby's winning record...

Jaromír Jágr, 44, was drafted at the age of 18 in 1990, an era in hockey defined by the prevalence of the mullet. Since then, he has established a career that has toured the NHL, from the Pittsburgh Penguins to the Washington Capitals, the New York Rangers, the Philadelphia Flyers, the Dallas Stars, the Boston Bruins, the New Jersey Devils, and the Florida Panthers (minus his three seasons with the KHL), a "This Land Is Your Land" on ice. At some point, he decided to restyle his hair.

Jágr has evolved beyond your average star to become something of the unofficial mascot for the NHL. Sure, we can appreciate the talents of the Capitals’ Alexander Ovechkin and the Penguins’ Sidney Crosby, but we recognize that Jágr is different. To appreciate the sport is to appreciate its gladiator. The numbers speak volumes: Jágr has scored 742-plus career goals (he is third after Wayne Gretzky, 894, and Gordie Howe, 801, surpassing Brett Hull, 741, on February 20, 2016). And he's at the point in his career where ovations on the road are regular, as evidenced at Madison Square Garden on Monday. He’s humble about all the applause, yet superstitious: “I like to have them at home, but on the road, of course it’s special. But every time I hear [cheering] on the road, I sort of have bad luck, so I don’t like to hear it.” (The Rangers beat the Panthers, 4–2.)

Messier's last season was in 2003-04, so it's been a dozen years since we've been able to go to a rink and actually see a player at the very top of the scoring record books. It's almost to the point where I want to take my kids to a game so they can say they've seen him play in their lifetime, even if they'd be more interested in Dippin' Dots or something.

It was really neat to talk to Mark Howe a couple weeks ago about Jagr and his father, Gordie, and how they compared. They were both so big and strong at such a young age, he pointed out. They both have a passion for the game and he said both men were energized by playing with younger players,

in Gordie's case, his sons. Jagr is clearly one of the all-time greats and we owe an assist to guys such as Aleksander Barkov and Jonathan Huberdeau for providing the assist in keeping it fun for Jagr to come to the rink every day.

Little word has leaked out from last week’s NHL executive committee meeting in New York, but deputy commissioner Bill Daly said via email Monday that “work remains ongoing” in the expansion process. Daly refuted a report in Sunday’s Seattle Times that the 10-member executive committee “recently shelved expansion decisions until March, maybe April,” citing concerns about the Canadian dollar. The NHL has reiterated over and over again that Seattle - which still has done nothing to bring their arena situation into focus - is not part of this expansion process, despite claims the league is stalling to wait and see what develops there.

Jaromir Jagr is $1.5 million richer after playing his 45th game of the season on Saturday, triggering a games-played bonus in his contract. That brings his guaranteed salary for 2015-16 to a total of $5 million and his career earnings north of $130 million. He can earn an additional $200,000 this season for hitting set point plateaus and $205,000 if the Panthers win two playoff rounds - the latter of which seems infinitely more possible now than it did when he signed the deal last April. Florida romped on both of last year’s Stanley Cup finalists by a combined score of 9-2 on back-to-back nights over the weekend. Contract talks have not begun yet between Jagr and the Panthers on an extension. Jagr, who turns 44 in three weeks, told reporters Saturday that he plans to attend this week’s All-Star festivities in Nashville. Whether he plays in the actual All-Star Game remains to be seen, amid speculation that Jagr preferred to bow out.

You could start with the 10-pound weight on Jaromir Jagr's hockey stick for training, the eight-pound medicine ball he shoots against the wall or the 45-pound weight vest he straps to his body.

"He does stuff I've never seen," Panthers goalie Roberto Luongo says.

You could start with the 1,000 daily squats he began as a child, the keys he had to open the ice rinks in Dallas and New Jersey, or how he skated on the ice, alone and hard, after a personally frustrating win against the New York Rangers recently.

"I learn just watching him," center Aleksander Barkov says.

Let's start with a Saturday night phone call, though. Maybe this explains the timeless riddle of Jagr. Maybe it shows why three weeks from 44 and more than four years older than any other NHL player, Jagr continues playing at such a high level to lead the first-place Panthers in points.

*So who in the world made the decision for the NHL Network to cut away from its cut-in to the Panthers-Canucks game on Monday just as the postgame hijinks at the Florida were getting interesting?

By the way, Jaromir Jagr nailed it when the Panthers were 8-8-3 on Nov. 20 and he said: “I thought we would have a better record, for sure.” Since then, the Puddy Tats (No offense, Denis, I’m having a peanut butter sandwich) have gone 18-5-3.

* Parity or parody? Through Thursday, 15 of the NHL’s 30 teams had won between 20 and 23 games, making each an honorary member of the NFC East.

*If the Canadian dollar continues its descent toward 60 cents on the U.S. buck, and thus increases the likelihood of escrow climbing over 20 percent next season, is anyone going to be surprised if the NHLPA does not exercise its 5 percent salary-cap bump, and could anyone really hold it against membership?

If teams are not planning on a decline in the 2016-17 cap — or at best, a flat $71.4 million — they would be making a significant mistake.

Brooks continues, discussing the Islanders' potential to become a playoff contender with the right moves, the John Scott deal, and, well, more Islanders stuff.

Why am I doing this? There are a lot of answers to that. First of all, I love it. Then, if I’m not gonna play hockey, I will still have to do something else, and then if I start doing something else, I have to start from the very bottom and learn, so why not do something that I know how to do?

And this is a great job. First of all, I don’t think it’s as hard as other jobs. You don’t have to wake up at 6 a.m. and go home at 5 p.m. like my parents did. You can really enjoy it. If you do something great, a lot of people know about it. Or it could work the other way, too—if you do something bad, a lot of people know about it, but it’s up to you. You make a lot of money.

But I think the important thing is I don’t know how long I’m going to live. The time between when I quit hockey and I die, I want it to be the shortest. It’s not going to be as exciting, that time. So as long as I can play, that’s what I’m doing. If I can play ’til I die, that’s what I will do. What else are you gonna do? Even if you retire, you will still have to go work out, and maybe harder than you do when you play hockey because you don’t want to look ugly and fat. At least I don’t want to.

That's Jaromir Jagr in the Big Read at Sportsnet from Kristina Rutherford, Ryan Dixon and Gare Joyce. Great and long article.

The greatest European-born player in league history — who has the fourth-most points (1,817) and sixth most goals (729) all time in the NHL — still is lacing them up and still leading the way, this 43-year-old marvel of nature pacing the Panthers in scoring with 15 points (7-8) in 17 games entering Saturday night’s match against the Rangers.

He has a different body, dramatically trimmed from a once-preferred fighting weight of 245 pounds to a svelte 230. He is almost unrecognizable in street clothes unless you recognize him from his 18-year-old 1990-91 season. For a second, you think time has stood still.

Jagr explains his new physique by saying he essentially would be standing still on the ice at 245 playing against this new generation of world-class skaters.

“I don’t know if I would be slower, but everyone else would be faster,” he said following Friday’s practice. “Like when you stay still and everyone passes you, it is like you are going backwards.”

Jagr, who turns 44 in early February, is amazingly in the top 10 in NHL scoring in what is clearly a young man’s game, where if you can’t skate fast, you seemingly can’t play. Obviously, they forgot Jagr as part of that equation.

When Jagr’s Florida Panthers played the Buffalo Sabres and teenager Jack Eichel, he outplayed the hyped kid who went second in this year’s draft.

His feet may have slowed, but not his hands, the part of the anatomy that goes before the legs — just ask Guy Lafleur and Jari Kurri, Teemu Selanne and Mike Modano.

“What can I say? Jagr is a forget-about-it anomaly, like Chris Chelios, who was still playing 16, 17 minutes a night at the same age in Detroit,” said TSN’s Craig Button, who was scouting for the Minnesota North Stars in 1990 when Jagr was eligible for the draft and went fifth to Pittsburgh.

Roberto Luongo made 24 saves and Jaromir Jagr (2-1—3) factored on all three Florida Panthers goals to help them improve to 11-1-2 in their past 14 games against the Sabres dating to March 17, 2012 (BUF: 3-8-3).

* Luongo won his 403rd game, tying Grant Fuhr for ninth place on the NHL all-time wins list. Glenn Hall is eighth with 407 wins. Luongo's next game will be his 868th, tying him with Fuhr for ninth in games played among goalies. Luongo is the active leader in games played, wins and shutouts (68).

* Jagr, who has 4-2—6 in four games this season, had his 124th career NHL multi-goal game and second of the season; his other was Oct. 10 against the Philadelphia Flyers. Elias says Jagr had at least three points in a game for the 192nd time in his NHL career. Only three players have more three-point games: Wayne Gretzky (459), Mario Lemieux (272) and Marcel Dionne (202).

* Overall, Jagr (726-1,082—1,808 in 1,554 GP) is five goals shy of matching Dionne (731) for the fourth-most goals in NHL history.

* Jagr had two of his points while on the man-advantage (1-1—2). His 205th power-play goal propelled him past Gretzky (204 PPG) and into a tie with Joe Sakic for 13th in NHL history. With 587 power-play points, Jagr also moved within one point of tying Teemu Selanne (588) for third all-time in power-play points.

Q: Most people go to Florida to retire. You decided to re-sign with the Panthers. What did you see in a 20-game audition that made you want to re-sign there?

Jagr: “I had a good 20 games. It was exciting. We were fighting for the playoffs. I had a chance to play with good, young, talented guys. Mostly, the way we play. I remember we had a chance to win every game. The young guys have potential.

“They had a chance to get better this year. Why not? I have fun. It’s a good place to play.”

Q: It’s been 23 years since you won the Stanley Cup. Most thought you would want to go to a contending team. Are the Panthers a playoff team?

SI's Allan Muir looks at the Eastern Conference's "also-ran" (i.e. non-playoff) teams, determining whether their summertime moves have improved the respective 8 non-playoff finishers or whether the teams are just treading water, and he discusses a team not talked about very much in the Florida Panthers:

Florida Panthers (91 points, 10th)

You have to give them credit. The Panthers proved to be surprisingly competitive last season, far exceeding expectations for a roster that relied so heavily on youth and fading glory. They’ll go with a similar formula next fall, hoping that youngsters such as Aaron Ekblad and Jonathan Huberdeau continue to progress and veterans like Jaromir Jagr have more than fumes in the tank.

The team’s one major move of the summer saw it ship out one inconsistent forward in Jimmy Hayes for another in Reilly Smith. The former Bruin is the more established of the two with 33 goals and 91 points during the past two seasons, and he fills a need at right wing created by the buyout of Brad Boyes. As far as upgrades go, it’s not going to get Florida over the hump. Unless GM Dale Tallon has something else up his sleeve, it looks like the Panthers are hoping for significant internal growth. That should keep them in the hunt, but they’ll need to catch a few breaks to make the cut.

There will be plenty of eyes on Florida after the Panthers waged their future with two draft picks at the deadline to get veteran winger Jaromir Jagr from New Jersey to try to make a push for the playoffs. Florida is about to come up short again and don't be surprised if former Pittsburgh GM Ray Shero lands in the organization in some capacity. He has a close relationship with Panthers' executive chairman.

...

You have to give the Coyotes credit because going into Saturday's action they had a legitimate shot of getting the best odds (20%) of winning the draft lottery. Because Coyotes GM Don Maloney did a teardown at the deadline by dealing the likes of forward Antoine Vermette (Chicago) along with defencemen Keith Yandle (Rangers) and Zbynek Michalek (St. Louis) and goalie Devan Dubnyk (Minnesota), Arizona is in a position to get a strong pick. On March 2, the Coyotes were four points ahead of the Sabres with 47. You have to wonder how much Arizona wants to improve next year because 2016 top prospect Austin Matthews, who is with the U.S. national team development program, is from the Coyotes' backyard and would be a huge get. Captain Shane Doan has always maintained he doesn't want to go anywhere but this could be a test of resolve.

Garrioch continues, discussing the possibility of Las Vegas being awarded an NHL team this year, the World Cup's "Young Guns" team, the Olympics and Todd McLellan...

Rangers winger Martin St. Louis may be a UFA on July 1 and doesn't have a contract but don't be surprised if at some point he re-signs with the club. The Rangers have cap so you'd think if they do sign St. Louis the deal will be structured with attainable goals for games-played. When he left the Tampa Bay Lightning last year at the trade deadline, St. Louis only only wanted to go to the Rangers. It would be hard to believe he'd want to move on this juncture.

...

Florida GM Dale Tallon took a gamble at the deadline acquiring winger Jaromir Jagr from the Devils in exchange for two draft picks. The Panthers remain on the outside looking in for the final wild-card spot and need a strong push down the stretch plus some help to make it to the post-season. Jagr went into Saturday's game vs. the Bruins with a 2-5-7 points in nine games with Florida ... According to a league executive, here are some deadline acquisitions that have worked out well: Winger Drew Stafford and defenceman Tyler Myers (Buffalo) have both played well in Winnipeg; Forward Curtis Glencross (Calgary) has made an impact for the Capitals and Chris Stewart (Buffalo) has picked up some points for the Wild ... Keep an eye on Colgate forward Tyler Baun. He's getting plenty of attention from NHL scouts. Chicago GM Stan Bowman along with representatives from Colorado, Toronto, Philly and the Rangers were in Lake Placid Friday at the ECAC championships to watch Baun play ... Lots of people wonder if Arizona (don't call me Phoenix) Coyotes coach Dave Tippett will be back behind the bench next season? He's a lot better coach when goalie Mike Smith stops the puck.

After years of selling off their top players before the trade deadline, Panthers General Manager Dale Tallon sent a strong message to the fans and his young team that he is committed to make the playoffs this season when he acquired nine-time All-Star forward Jaromir Jagr from the Devils Thursday afternoon.

Jagr, 43, the active leader in points (1,784), games played (1,530), assists (1,068), goals (716), plus/minus (+284) and power-play goals (202) cost the Panthers a second-round pick in June and a conditional third-round pick in 2016. This season, Jagr, a sure-fire Hall of Famer, has 11 goals and 18 assists in 57 games.

“That we’re buyers and committed to winning,’’ Tallon said was his message. “[Owner Vinnie Viola] and we all said we want to win a championship. We’re putting the pieces together step by step. Hopefully, Jaromir can lead these young guys to the promised land. It’s a win-win for us."

SUNRISE, Fla. – Florida Panthers Executive Vice President and General Manager Dale Tallon announced today that the club has acquired F Jaromir Jagr from the New Jersey Devils in exchange for Florida’s second-round draft pick in 2015 and a conditional third-round draft pick in 2016.

Jagr, 43, ranks first among active National Hockey League leaders in points (1,784), games played (1,530), assists (1,068), goals (716), plus/minus (+284) and power play goals (202). Among all-time NHL leaders, he ranks first in game-winning goals (127), fifth in points, sixth in goals, seventh in assists and 13th in games played.

added 4:38pm,

No salary retained in Jagr deal. Condition on third round pick is that Devils decide which of two third round picks Panthers have they want